Statistics, eventing safety, and interviews..
Being a true fan of most things that improves eventing safety I had to gasp for air when reading up on the new [yet another] rule which is being introduced for the eventing season of 2025.
Sometime back in 2013 I started to write a blog dedicated to eventing and eventing only. Some people believed I was very rough on the edges when writing. Others hated me, and did not shy away to tell either me, and or others they did.
To others, which turned out to be a larger group of people, I later realised I had turned into almost a myth, and a legend!
Looking back, maybe I was a bit too unpolished and rough around the edges. But all I did was to write articles based on team selections, combined with individual as well as team performances as listed in the database of the FEI.
Guess what..
In my predictions in regards to form I was spot on like a Swiss wrist watch. Yes, you read it correctly I was hardly ever wrong. So why was that?
I studied the sport up close - as in actually attending the events.
I set up a formula which I used to turn results into statistical data.
I worked those two systems of information side by side and came up to conclusions on where horses and riders were heading.
Been there done that!
Fast forward to the year 2023 and the FEI Eventing Forum & National Safety Officers (NSOs) Seminar were jumping off excitement over the HFI - Horse Form Index.
Which, lets face it, felt like quite old news for someone who used this kind of set up already 10 years earlier. But evidently, as ever so often in life, it all comes down to who is delivering the goods for people to buy it.
Sad thing though it took so long for the people responsible for the safety of the sport to get onboard and do so.
Cause eventing safety is not some kind of weird rocket science, or even depending on frangible pins. It all comes down to experience, and to find ways to eliminate the human factor. A concept i.e. both commercial and military aviation grasped a long long time ago.
The Swiss cheese model of accident causation is a model used in risk analysis and risk management.
Even so, being a true fan of most things that improves eventing safety I had to gasp for air when reading up on the new [yet another] rule which is being introduced for the eventing season of 2025.
What I am talking about is the complete new article, 524.3, that is now to be found in the international eventing rules.
New article 524.3 Horse Fall systematic interview Following any Horse Fall on Cross Country, a systematic interview/discussion must take place between the Athlete and the Ground Jury (President or Member) and/or the Technical Delegate.
Who came up with this?
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Split second events and clueless riders!
Cause does anybody seriously believe they are going to get authentic recaps from the riders? Most riders are clueless why shit happens!
Please know that when I say people are clueless I am not referring to people's intelligence. I am referring to the fact that most falls are over and done with in literally a split second.
Also clueless are most members of the ground jury, the fence judges and TDs.
Not because they don't care [maybe in some cases they don't] but because the simple fact that even when a fall is captured on film it can be hard to judge why things went bad and why they didn't.
The worst fall I ever had, I remember being all happy, galloping along the course and counting five even strides to the next fence.
My next fragment of this memory is not jumping the fence but instead my head hitting the ground in what can only be described as a seriously awkward angle, with me having the time to think that I was going to break my neck and die..
Afterwards, not a single person could recount for what actually happened. Some people said the horse refused, others that she fell. Others were sure we crashed in the fence while jumping it. Most people had no idea!
Myself was left with a broken shoulder and a broken index finger. Those are very tangible memories, and injuries that are still with me.
But truth of the matter is, I will never know what really happened!
Which make me believe these interviews will lead nowhere. Cause even if people do know what actually happened there are not that many riders out there that are willing to admit to any wrong doings.
If there were. We would not see so many of them rush through the levels no matter of their own level of experience and expertise now would we?
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